Keir Starmer addresses a Cabinet meeting in September.

Cabinet ministers are at war over claims Rachel Reeves misled them about the state of the public finances in the run-up to the Budget.

The Times reported on Monday that senior members of the government believe they were not told the full picture as the chancellor laid the groundwork for more tax rises.

Reeves held a highly-unusual Downing Street press conference at the start of last month in which she painted a gloomy economic picture, suggesting she needed to raise more cash to fill a black hole of up to £30 billion.

But it emerged on Friday that just days before, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) had told her the government actually had a £4.2bn surplus in its finances.

Reeves was forced on Sunday to deny she had lied to the public, insisting she had always been clear about the need to put up taxes to boost public spending and give herself more “fiscal headroom”, or spare cash, in case........

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